New York Post - Astorino Calls for Dramatic Reduction in State Income Tax

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By Carl Campanile

Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino is calling for sweeping changes in the state's income-tax rates, while proposing to eliminate some long-time tax credits, including for the politically connected film and TV industry.

In a speech before the Association for a Better New York, Astorino proposed a 4 percent income tax for individual incomes under $200,000 and 6 percent for those earning more than $200,000.

The top marginal 6 percent rate would kick in for a married couple filing jointly and earning over $300,000.

The state currently has eight tax rates that top out at 8.82 percent for the wealthiest New Yorkers.

Astorino, the Westchester County executive, wants them reduced to just two.

He also recommended cutting the corporate tax to 5.9 percent from 7 percent by 2019, eliminating the estate tax entirely by 2020 and scrapping a tax surcharge on utility bills.

Speaking at The Warwick hotel in Midtown, Astorino said his plan "will give New York one of the lowest tax rates in the Northeast, making New York much more competitive than it has been in over a generation."

His campaign acknowledged the income-tax reduction plan could cost $5 billion to $7 billion.

"To help pay for these cuts, we will pledge to reduce or hold flat state budget spending in each of the next four years, matching my record in Westchester," he said.

"We'll eliminate most of the $1.7 billion in business tax credits, starting with the $420 million New York Film Tax Credit," said Astorino, who has blasted the tax subsidies as corporate welfare.

Gov. Cuomo has focused more on reining in property taxes and corporate tax relief.

He has imposed a cap on annual property-tax increases, which Astorino supports.

One fiscal expert applauded Astorino's plan as promoting economic growth.

"These certainly sound like the right goals for state tax policy. Much of what he's proposing is a natural next step beyond what Cuomo has done," said E.J. McMahon of the Empire Center for New York State Policy.

But Cuomo dismissed Astorino's ideas, saying his own administration has already cut taxes in a fiscally responsible way.

"Everyone's taxes are lower than they were four years ago," Cuomo said.

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